Sustainable pollock buying guide
If the fish is shaped into a square, battered, fried, and served on a bun, there’s a good chance it’s pollock or walleye pollock. Pollock is caught in the Atlantic, and walleye pollock is caught in the Pacific, and the latter can only be labeled Alaska pollock when caught in Alaska. Its mild flavor and light, flaky texture make Alaska pollock the fifth most popular seafood in the United States. However, some pollock caught in the Atlantic is considered unsustainable by Seafood Watch standards, so it’s important to know what to buy and what to avoid.
Quick buying guide
- Buy Alaska pollock.
- Buy Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified pollock, except from Russia.
- Avoid other pollock, unless you confirm it’s from a source we recommend (scroll down for more information).
What to buy or avoid?
© Scandposters
Pollock
Pollock is caught in the Atlantic Ocean.
- Buy pollock caught in the U.S. Georges Bank or U.S. Gulf of Maine if you confirm it was caught with bottom trawls or handlines and pole-and-lines.
- Buy pollock caught in Canada’s Atlantic if you confirm it was caught with handlines or set longlines.
- Avoid pollock caught in the U.S. Georges Bank or U.S. Gulf of Maine with set gillnets. Set gillnets pose an entanglement risk to endangered North Atlantic right whales.
- Avoid pollock caught in Canada’s Atlantic with bottom trawls or set gillnets. These fisheries catch at-risk species, and gillnets also put right whales at risk.
What to buy or avoid?
© Scandposters
Walley pollock
Walleye pollock is caught in the Pacific Ocean. It can only be labeled Alaska pollock when it’s caught in Alaska.
- Buy Alaska pollock.
- Avoid walleye pollock caught in British Columbia, Canada, if you can’t confirm it’s yellow-rated. Red-rated fisheries catch 87 percent of the volume.
Certified pollock
- Buy Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified pollock, except from Russia. Most Alaska pollock is MSC certified.
More about our pollock recommendations
When is pollock environmentally sustainable?
Pollock rated green by Seafood Watch is the most environmentally sustainable because it comes from a healthy population, and the well-managed fishery has minimal to no impact on other marine life and habitats. Currently, no pollock fisheries are rated green.
Pollock rated yellow means management of the fishery is considered moderately effective, but bycatch impacts are a major concern, or it’s caught with Atlantic cod, which is depleted in the U.S. and considered endangered in Canada.
Pollock rated red by Seafood Watch is not environmentally sustainable because the stock is being overfished, bycatch or entanglement of other marine life is a significant risk, and/or fishery management is considered ineffective.
What are the main pollock fishing methods?
Seafood Watch’s recommendations cover pollock caught in the Atlantic Ocean with bottom trawls, set longlines, set gillnets, and handlines and hand-operated pole-and-lines. Bottom trawls and set longlines are more likely to catch other marine life. Set gillnet fisheries in the U.S. and Canada operate within the endangered North Atlantic right whale’s range, and there are significant concerns about entanglement risks to whales. Handlines and hand-operated pole-and-lines tend to have fewer bycatch impacts, but pollock is caught with overexploited Atlantic cod.
Here’s a quick look at these fishing methods:
- Bottom trawls herd pollock into a cone-shaped net as they’re dragged along the seafloor.
- Set gillnets entangle pollock when they swim into stationary netting positioned on or near the seafloor.
- Set longlines are stationary fishing lines with baited hooks positioned on or near the seafloor.
- Handlines and hand-operated pole-and-lines catch pollock with one or more fishing lines with baited hooks. This fishing method is also described as pole-and-lines.
How to use this guide
Our green, yellow, and red ratings indicate environmental risk. We use our ratings and third-party certifications to make our recommendations.
Choose
- Green-rated seafood because environmental risks are low.
- Yellow-rated seafood because environmental risks are moderate.
Avoid
- Red-rated seafood because environmental risks are high, often due to overfishing, poor management, or harm to marine life and habitats.
Where to find sustainable seafood
Finding sustainable seafood is easier than you might think. Here’s how to get started.
- Use Seafood Watch guides. Our Popular Seafood Guide covers the seafoods you’re most likely to encounter and is the easiest place to start. Our national guide covers many more seafoods and works anywhere in the U.S. Our six regional guides are tailored to what you’re likely to find in your part of the country. Our 14 species guides cover all of our recommendations for each species, including salmon, shrimp, tuna, crab, and other popular seafood.
- Shop at businesses committed to sustainable seafood. Some retailers have made formal commitments to follow Seafood Watch recommendations. MOM's Organic Market and PCC Community Markets follow our recommendations. Whole Foods Market sources green-rated, yellow-rated, and MSC certified wild seafood and has a proprietary standard for farmed seafood.
- Dine with one of our partners. The Cheesecake Factory and California Fish Grill have commitments to serve sustainable seafood, and Seafood Watch Best Choice Restaurant Program partners offer at least one green-rated seafood dish on their menus. For a meal-kit option, all HelloFresh seafood is green-rated, yellow-rated, or certified.
- Ask a question. Next time you’re at a seafood counter or restaurant, ask “Do you sell sustainable seafood?” It’s a simple question that does more than you might think. When you ask this question, you’re helping create demand for sustainable seafood and encouraging businesses to offer it.
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